New to brewing, lager query.

[hopsbee]

Hi all,

My coopers canadian blonde has been on the go about 8 days now, it has been constant at SG 1.012 for two days. Is it time to keg/bottle or has it stopped and do i need to do something?? It has been in airing cupboard this time. If i do keg, how much priming sugar do i need for circa 40 pints?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Duncs]

1012 sounds about right for that one, I seem to remember mine finishing around there but I would leave it until it's almost totally clear before bottling/kegging, I'd give it another week and move it somewhere cooler.

About 150 - 200 grams of sugar for 40 pints of lager. If you keg it in one of those plastic kegs, don't expect it to be very fizzy, they can't hold the pressure needed. You'd be better off bottling it.

 

[shearclass]

If kegging, use about 80g sugar.

200g is pointelss, as the kegs can't hold the pressure generated by that much priming sugar, and the excess will jsut be let out through the safety release.

If bottling, as an approxiamte rule, use 4g per litre for mild carbonation, and 8g per litre for strong carbonation.

 

[hopsbee]

Great, thanks for that.

Sorry, Do you mean leave it where it is now for a week, then move it to a cooler place or move to a cooler place now for a week or so. :?

Also, keg wise i got a king keg pressure barrel with CO2 cartidges, will that not do the job of keeping the fiz?

 

[shearclass]

That depnds what carboantion you are wanting to acheive. If you want mild carbonations, liek a bottled ale, then yes. If you want carbonation liek a lager, then no, you won't acheive that with a king keg.

 

[hopsbee]

Ok, so bottle lager best and i can get away with kegging ale.

Am i right in thinking that i can get away with 2 x carbonation drops in a typical 500ml when i am bottling this lager??

I only used one when bottling a pale ale and there wasnt much fiz.

 

[PokeHer]

Let me know how it goes, I'm starting off a Canadian Blonde at the weekend. Good luck

 

[shearclass]

Not sure abotu carbonation drops as I've nver used them. For me they are a very expensive way of buying sugar!

I thought 1 was suitable for 500ml, but can't remember what the instructions on the packet say.

With your previous brew,could it be that you didn';t keep the bottles in the warm long enough after priming them?

 

[ScottM]

I've used those carbonation drops once, never again. Reading the blurb on them they seem like the ideal solution, no mess and a perfectly measured dose. Unfortunately coopers only accomodate for 384mls and 750mls (or thereabouts) so if you have 500ml bottles, as most do, they are useless.

I would suggest either binning what you have left or if the packet is unopened just selling them on. Before I realised they weren't for 500s I had already bottled around 30 bottles with them. They came out with next to no carbonation (cider), won't be anywhere near enough for a lager IMO but 2 will also be far too much. If you have a secondary bucket just mix in 150-200g of sugar before bottling and you're good to go :)

 

[Darcey]

I used 2x carbonation drops in a coopers lager kit and it came out lovely and fizzy just right.
1x drop works good for an ale. Thats just my experience.